The Association was founded by Diane C. Crawford for the purpose of
establishing a professional standard and code of ethics for this
important group of health care specialists. From the beginning, NPA
has been firmly committed to excellence in developing educational
curriculum, providing accreditation, offering continuing education
programs, researching issues involving phlebotomy, and promoting professional and
public awareness.

The curriculum design for phlebotomy was developed by Alice J.
Hilifiker, Ph.D., and the national phlebotomy certification
examination was launched by NPA at the University of California at
San Francisco in 1981.

Certified PhlebotomistsNPA has certified over 15,000 phlebotomists in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Barbados, Canada, and Switzerland with 75 accredited teaching programs in universities, colleges, health care training institutes, and hospitals nationwide.